When most people start posting on LinkedIn, no one cares.

That sounds harsh but it is true. We have no track record of delivering value online, and little reason for anyone to stop scrolling for you.

The only way to earn attention is by delivering value consistently. But that takes time... and when no one is watching yet, it can feel like you are shouting into the void. So how do you speed it up?

One of the fastest ways to break out of that loop is to stop trying to create attention from scratch. Instead, you capture attention that already exists.

This is called newsjacking.

You take a story people are already paying attention to and connect it to something YOUR audience cares about. The news gets their attention. Your perspective gives them a reason to remember you.

Here’s how to do it.

A good newsjacking post has two parts:

The event → So what?

The event tells people what happened.

The “So what?” explains why it matters to your specific audience.

It could be a lesson - an insight, warning or action - that they will not get from reading the announcement itself. Or something funny.

This does more work than the announcement itself.

You are not trying to become another news account. You are helping people understand what the news means for them.

Here are a few examples:

I would start with Grok because news tend to show up on X first.

Search for:

You are looking for a story with existing attention and a clear connection to your niche.

Also check the trending tab on X.

This is where most posts fall apart.

Do not stop at, “Company X launched a new feature.”

Ask:

Pick one answer. That becomes the central idea of the post.

Most people already know the headline by the time they see your post.

So your hook should focus on what the news means.

For example:

Weak:
“OpenAI just launched a new feature.”

Stronger:
“OpenAI just killed one part of your current workflow.”

The second version creates a reason to keep reading.

Use your experience, a client conversation or something you have personally tested.

Even one sentence can change the entire post:

“I tested it against the workflow I have used for the last 6 months. Here is where it saved time, and where it fell short.”

Now you are contributing something useful instead of recycling the press release.

The window on these posts is short. But if you find the right story and nail the delivery, you can get more reach from one newsjacking post than from a week of original content.

Give this a try this week and let me know how it goes!

See you next week,

Will

P.S. I just made a new YouTube video on the 10 types of LinkedIn posts you need for 2026. Watch it here.

Will McTighe

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